Jason Clark

Northern Lights

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:11:53 -0800

I went to see the Northern Lights
So bright, reflected of your eyes
As your glory cloud descends,
Hey friends, its time that we got going

Come on in out of the cold, come home
Lets go find this Kingdom come, well done, well done

Let me find my joy complete
Let me see, oh love be my sweet witness

Come on in out of the cold, come home
Lets go find this Kingdom come, well done, well done

When the sun sets on my shoulder
When the northern lights shine bold
When my troubles, there all over, well done

Come on in out of the cold, come home
Lets go find this Kingdom come, well done, well done

Me And The Thunder Sons

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:06:42 -0800

Me And The Thunder Sons

I turn my face to a blazing sun
Your glory falls, Your Kingdom comes

Oh my God You are you are You are
Such a Holy love enough, enough, enough
Oh but still I must have more
Lying here on my kitchen floor
Jesus have your way, meet me face to face

I pledged my head to a holy love
Put down my paper picked up my guns
We took the hill, me and the Thunder Sons
We didn't quit till Thy Kingdom Comes

Singing Oh My God You are, You are, You are
Such a holy love, enough, enough, enough
Oh, but still we must have more
Lying here on Your sanctuary floor
Jesus have your way, meet us face to face

13 Have You Seen Her Lately

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 00:07:01 -0700

My Blog

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 22:59:02 -0700

My New Blog Location www.surrenderedanduntamed.blogspot.com

14 Let It Begin

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 21:28:32 -0700

07 Down Dizzy

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 21:24:00 -0700

10 Without You

Mon, 25 May 2009 22:02:55 -0700

08 Deeper

Mon, 25 May 2009 21:58:52 -0700

06 Lightspeed

Mon, 25 May 2009 21:53:54 -0700

05 Alone

Mon, 25 May 2009 21:49:34 -0700

04 Returning Missionary

Mon, 25 May 2009 21:42:57 -0700

03 Home

Sat, 23 May 2009 21:54:11 -0700

02 Balancing

Sat, 23 May 2009 21:51:10 -0700

01 Believe

Sat, 23 May 2009 21:47:32 -0700

iTunes - Surrendered & Untamed

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 17:56:53 -0800

The Audible Voice Of God

Fri, 20 Feb 2009 22:42:43 -0800

(Note – I have changed the names in the following story because its funnier… and my sister told me too) Have you ever heard the audible voice of God, the actual audible voice? On a daily basis I encounter God, through reading, or prayer, music; throughout the day He speaks to me. And then there have been the profound meetings with God where I’ve experienced the power of His presence in my heart, mind, body and soul. And then there was the one time I heard Him speak in an audible voice. This is what He said, “Your kissing another mans wife” When I was ten years old, the kids in my class started to tease me about Wonder Woman (Note – Her name was not Wonder Woman) There was a song they loved to sing when Wonder Woman and I were in the same room. It went like this, “Jason and Wonder Woman sitting in a tree K.I.S.S.I.N.G. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a baby in the baby carriage.” It’s a catchy tune; it gets in your head. It also does a great job establishing the proper order to a relationship, but I don’t think the kids were singing it to encourage healthy dating. The song didn’t really bother me much; I was only slightly embarrassed. But more than anything, I was surprised. In all honesty, at that point in my life, I hadn’t even thought about the love part yet. And why were we in a tree? But the kids were singing the song and Wonder Woman seemed nice, so I started considering it. Ten children seemed about right, I even came up with a few names, Talon, Blade and Lightning and then of course Thunder. I couldn’t come up with any cool girl names but I figured Wonder Woman could do that because she was a girl. And as far as the kissing was concerned, did we really have to? One night my Dad overheard my sister, Aimee and I, talking about the impending nuptials. He called me over and said “Jason, you are too young to be thinking about girls.” And that was that, the wedding was called off and I stopped thinking about Wonder Woman and our ten kids. When I was young, many things were easier. If Dad said, “don’t worry about it,” well, then I stopped worrying about it. However, three years later I met Princess Leah (Note – Here name was not princes Leah). She was my sister’s best friend, I liked her and I didn’t need anyone singing songs about baby carriages to be convinced. She was pretty and nice and well, I don’t think my Dad could have talked me out it. I was smitten. For months, Aimee, Princes Leah, my friend David and I would hang out. Our favorite place was the mall and between the mall and youth group, Leah and I developed a friendship that would make you want to giggle. Then one night, our youth group had a big cookout at a farm that belonged to a church member. It was one of those magical nights with a bonfire, a hayride and caramel apples. And then there was the girl. She smelled nice and she laughed at my jokes and at one point we began to hold hands. It was absolutely amazing. Late in the evening, Aimee, David, Princes Leah and I went for a walk. Somewhere along the way, Aimee and David lagged behind and suddenly we were alone. I could hear the Tiffany song in my head “…I think we’re alone now, there doesn’t seem to be any one a-rah -hound, I think we’re alone now, the beating of my heart is the only sa-ound…” I was holding Leah’s hand and I could barely breath. Before I could think of anything to say or do, she kissed my cheek, then turned and ran back to the bon fire laughing. About four months later my family moved to the Northwest and Princes Leah’s family moved to Indiana. I thought I was saying goodbye to the love of my young life. But Leah and Aimee stayed in touch and over the years the Princes and I would write each other and occasionally talk on the phone. I never forgot that kiss and so when she came out to visit us one summer, we picked up right where we left off. At the age of 17, Princes Leah officially became my girlfriend and at the age of 18, I left home for a job. This job allowed for me to travel through Indiana on a regular basis. As Princes Leah lived with her parents, whenever I came through I would stay at the house and we would go out on a date. This was true love people… I wrote her a beautiful song about climbing mountains and swimming oceans just to see her. Imagine Bryan Adams and the song on Robin Hood and you pretty much got it… It made her cry. When I wasn’t with her, I would spend hours writing her letters and dreaming about what life would be like with her in it. In fact there were no future scenarios without her. In my mind we were married with kids. And this time it was the more realistic number of 5 or 6. And as far as the kissing, well, ok, if we had to… One night while I was praying, I realized that I had given an awful lot of my heart to Princes Leah and hadn’t even considered asking God about it. I began to converse with God in my heart and as I did, He pointed out that I had gone pretty far down the road of my future without including Him in any of the decisions. Then God asked me if He was first in my life or if Princes Leah was. When I realized that I couldn’t answer this question correctly, I became depressed and frustrated. Over the next month I agonized in my prayer life as God kept bringing this question back to my heart. Finally I said, “Ok God, I want to put You first but I really like Princes Leah. What can I do?” I felt like God asked me to take a break. I was frustrated and yet I trusted God and His love. And so in my heart I determined that the next time I saw Leah, I would put our relationship on hold. The next time I saw her ended up being the following week. I arrived in the afternoon and spent a few hours with her family before taking her out on a dinner date. I planned on breaking the news over dinner but she looked at me as if she liked me. I was a little worried about Princes Leah’s feelings but I knew she loved God and I felt that she would not only understand but she would probably be impressed with my Godliness. Still, I decided to wait and tell her after dinner. Maybe in the car, I thought. After dinner we drove around until eventually we found a church parking lot. It was a true country church and was in the middle of a field in the middle of nowhere. I planned on telling her during the drive but she was holding my hand. When we parked, I turned on the tape deck, rolled down the windows and we took a blanket and sat on the hood of the car. “Ok God, I’ll tell her now” I thought. Then I kissed her. And it was then that I heard it. In an audible voice God said “You are kissing another mans wife!” It was so loud and so strong that I jerked back from Princes Leah. I looked at her to see if she had heard it. She looked confused yet it was apparent she hadn’t heard anything. But I had heard it. I was so shaken up, not just by my failure but also by the message. Princes Leah wasn’t mine... God Has A Plan Gods plan for our lives is so much grander than ours. His thoughts always surpass ours. His dreams are bigger and better than we could imagine. His goodness is beyond our comprehension. I learned this first hand a year later when at Bible College I met my wife to be, Karen. No one on this planet including all who have ever lived before and all who will ever live after are more perfect than she is. And God knew this! He saw my future and said, “It is good!” On top of all of that, I get to kiss her too! And three perfect kids with really cool names are better than any man could hope for. So God has a plan. He is never caught off guard or surprised. He has a plan and if you say yes to Him he will work it in you. He doesn’t always tell you why. He rarely gives you the whole picture or the full interpretation. He doesn’t often speak out loud but He will guide you. His dreams for us are bigger than we could even ask or imagine and his love never ceases. God also has perfect timing. We can push our own agendas or we can rest and chase after Him. In my prayer time, God was gently telling me he had something else. Yet I was so blinded by my idea of what it should look like that I wasn’t able to see. I often have a hard time letting go. I can have a hard time trusting God. My heart can often engage without having discussed anything with God. I will track things down and make things happen. I can almost always make it work. I can almost always make it fit but thankfully God in His mercy and grace often steps in and says, “Hey, this isn’t my best for you” or “Hey, this isn’t my plan, it’s yours.” Or Hey, “You are kissing another mans wife.” Often I have interpreted my hearts desires incorrectly and then chased them down. Sometimes what I’ve thought was the best, wasn’t what He thinks is the best. Sometimes I think I know the best ending to my story even though at the age of five I asked God to be the author. But even when God leads me to a place that seems contrary to everything I understand, I know that his characters always get the girl (figuratively). If I will simply surrender, God will never let me down.

The Gas Attendant And 9 Other Reasons Not To Go To Bible College…

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 15:01:39 -0800

The CO-OP sold everything. A mini Wal-Mart of sorts, they even had a gas station in the parking lot, which is where I got my first job. My dad had driven me there to apply and had assured Bill - the manager - that I was a trustworthy young man. I explained to Bill how I could easily ride my ten-speed to work and so it made “perfect sense” …and so at the age of 15 for $5.50 an hour Canadian, I became a gas attendant. I remember this job well; the cold nights where I was forced to either stand outside and freeze or sit in the 5ft by 10ft-heated cubicle with my two pot-smoking co-workers. They were bright fellas for potheads and to my knowledge never got caught smoking while on the job. Of course, this was the North West where people would often welcome neighbors into their community with a marijuana plant. You know, just a quick hello, a friendly welcome and a “feel free to stop by and borrow sugar anytime.” My least favorite part of the job was filling the trucks or vans that ran on propane. Bill taught me quickly and was able to instill a proper respect by a story he told. Apparently a guy he knew had once incorrectly connected the propane nozzle to the tank and the propane leaked all over his hand. His hand was immediately frozen due to the extreme temperature of propane gas and his fingers literally broke off. I don’t know if the story was true or if the science would support it, but I was 15, was just learning how to play the guitar and still needed all my fingers. Bill the manager was anything but patient. This was probably due to the fact that he was a middle-aged man managing pot smoking teenagers pumping gas. He was a frightening guy to work for seeing as he was almost always mad at someone or something and screaming was how he coped. So when the sweet old lady came in to fill up her brand new Cadillac and asked me to top off her oil, I didn’t want to bother Bill with silly questions. Such as, “where does the oil go,” or “how much is too much?” I had already asked him twice that day if the propane nozzle was hooked up right. Plus he had already shown me where oil goes earlier in the week and was none to happy about it the first time. I did what any 15 year old would have done, I guessed. About a half an hour later the sweet old lady was back and she seemed to be having steering problems. “I just don’t understand it” she said, “the steering wheel is very hard to turn and it only started happening after I got gas.” To which I quickly responded, “It could be bad gas.” One would think that my gas attendant carrier was over before it had even been given a fighting chance. However, four years later, I found myself again being driven by my dad to apply for a job as a gas attendant. This time I lived just south of Rochester NY where I was a freshman attending Bible College. I went to Bible College. It was not Seminary. I feel I must make this clear as I have since run into many people who seem to take offense at my previously ignorant assumption that they are the same thing. The last thing I want to do is offend the real theology students who attend schools such as Princeton or Bob Jones and are better educated regarding matters of education. (funny but may be to odd – they don’t know me yet) I went to a Bible College and have since come up with at least ten reasons one might consider something else… Our second semester had just started and my dad was visiting me. I needed to find a job to help pay for tuition and I didn’t have a car. So again I found myself being driven by my dad to an interview. The gas station was within walking distance from the college, so it again made perfect sense. Omitting the oil incident, I told the manager about my qualifications and he hired me. And just like that I was back in the game. In January, in upstate NY, it’s dark by 5:00 and below freezing by 5:30. On this - my first night at the job - it was about ten degrees with a wind chill somewhere in the minus ten department. My new co-worker and I were warming up inside our little 5ft by 10ft-heated cubicle (no pot this time) and as the black Volvo pulled up to the pump he asked “is it your turn?” I had filled up the last ten cars and was positive it wasn’t my turn, but I just said “no.” “You go ahead and get this one anyway.” He said. “That way we can be sure you know what you’re doing.” Though I had filled several hundred cars with gas by now, my senior co-worker - who was “training” me – apparently thought I still needed more practice. I looked at him just long enough to let him know what we both already knew - he was an idiot - and then headed out into the frozen night, my lungs immediately icing over. The lady in the car rolled her window down an inch and said, “Fill it up please” and then quickly rolled it back up with a look of sympathy. “This sucks,” I thought as I stamped my feet to keep to keep them warm and wiped my nose with the back of my hand, “but God wants me here”… Ok, I’m not certain I thought the second part…ok I probably didn’t think the second part; at least not while I was freezing my tail off. But later, in my bed while talking with God, I knew he wanted me at this Bible College. I knew He had a plan. And it was a huge plan with grand adventures, where I would live a life of significance, a life marked by the miraculous, filled with love and beauty and probably a little fame too. You see at the age of five kneeling at the coffee table one sunny Tuesday with my mom, I asked Jesus into my heart. And Jesus came into my heart. I believed. And it was then that the promise was birthed. That was the day I first saw it. Just a small glimpse and it was enough. I knew that life was good and there were greater things to come. When I gave Jesus my life, He promised He would always be with me. Through the years this promise followed me like a lovely ghost. I encountered it in a song, in a book. I dreamed it. I watched it in a movie; I heard it from the pulpit. It was a gradual unwinding, a realization of who God is, that He lived in me and that He is good. He is always good. Also, as I read my Bible, I realized that God being in you means a life of adventure; a life marked by the miraculous. You see, I believe that if you have made Jesus Lord of your life, then you have a promise. Even if you haven’t, you still have a promise, you just have yet to embrace the promise giver. I believe the promise is there, waiting for us in the womb, salvation is just an introduction to living it. I believe this promise is unique to every individual, is discovered in our dreams and lives in our hearts. It’s the thing that most excites us and oddly most terrifies us as well. It’s what we were born for. I have heard the promise referred to as a destiny or a purpose. That’s fine. I believe it’s those things. But I like the word promise so much more. It implies that I’m not the only one involved in its fulfillment. It suggests that there is more to it than hard work and chance. It hints at relationship… So on that desperately cold night, while pumping gas in Western NY in order that I might earn enough money to afford a Bible College education that couldn’t later be compared to a Seminary education – and while my nose was running and my feet were numbing - I knew I had a promise. And at the time, I couldn’t possibly imagine it looked like pumping gas… And so if you had asked me about my life then, I would have said “this is not my promise” and therefore I will only be pumping gas (#1) for a short season. I was right, at least about how long I would be pumping gas. As the years passed I waited tables (#2), delivered pizzas (#3) and played in a band (#4). I worked on an assembly line (#5). I was a painter (#6), a worship leader (#7), a mason (#8) and a carpenter (#9). I installed siding, windows and doors (#10). I crawled under houses and stood on chimney tops. I worked in freezing lake effect cold and suffocating Mississippi heat. And there you have it; ten perfectly “sane” reasons not to go to Bible College…or… The question that has burned in me over the years causing considerable heartache and a yearning that’s bordered insanity is, “How do I attain my promise”? How many cars must I fill up? How many times must I wipe my nose? How long before I see the promise fulfilled? You see I was born for greatness! I’m sure of it; I can feel it every time Jesus tells me He loves me. Every God encounter I have had confirms it. Its revealed in every Bible story I’ve read; God loves taking nobodies and making them into somebodies. Yet as the days turned to months and the months to years, my promise often weighed heavy and that lovely ghost began to haunt me. “How long have I chased the promise? How much longer must I chase it?” Then, several years ago, God and I had a profound conversation. Late one night after my wife Karen and the kids were in bed, God asked me a question. “Do you trust me?” I thought for a moment, finally I said “Yes Lord.” He responded, “Then believe.” From that point on, my perspective on life has undergone a radical shifting, as though I have come awake for the first time. All that I encountered over the first ten years of my adult life, including the jobs I just mentioned, were experienced while in pursuit of my promise. Yet since that conversation with God, I have begun to live in the revelation that I was not born into His Kingdom to chase the promise but to chase the promise giver. I’ve learned in regards to my promise that when the question in life shifts from how long must I chase my promise to how big will I believe, the focus shifts as well. As I’ve begun to engage this revelation, I’ve begun to see the world through the eyes of God. The more I’ve lived in this revelation the more I’ve found that His purpose and mine are becoming one and the same. As I choose to believe, I find I am no longer chasing an ever-elusive promise but engaging it. I’m no longer waiting for my story to begin; I’m smack in the middle of it. We all have a life story. So does God. In the beginning God dreamed. A world became. A love story began. Since the beginning of this story, the All-Powerful Creator of the Heavens and the Earth has pursued mankind, has loved us, died for us and invited us to live within the context of His love. Since the beginning of the story, God has purposed man to rule and reign with Him over the earth. And since the beginning of the story, there has been one question that God has asked of us. It’s echoed down the corridors of history. His Story. Our Story The question? Will you believe? How big, how wide, how far, how great will you believe? I’m convinced that the answer to that question is what this journey called life is all about. That a life of purpose and fulfilled destiny; a life of engaged promise, is found when we posses believing.

12 One More Day to There

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 21:32:43 -0700

11 Oxygen

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 21:29:45 -0700

10 Killing Kind

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 21:16:56 -0700